Network! Network! Network!

2014-04-04 10:10

Zareef Minty

Zareef Minty : Farah Fortune - Network! Network! Network!

I don’t have to elaborate on how important networking is for every single person, whether you are at a CEO position or whether you are the cleaner at your local Virgin Active. Networking is so fundamental to your road to success and meeting the right people in your industry or line of work. I know first-hand what networking can do for someone. I would not have been able to meet even half the people I know today if it was not for looking at myself as a brand and selling “Zareef Minty” to people, allowing them to buy into my ideas and personality. The best thing I could do was to find someone extremely successful and use that person as a benchmark to what I would like to become, so my conversations was aligned to networking with the right people that brought me closer to my benchmark.

You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.

That saying is terrifyingly true, our aim as ambitious individuals should be to have a list of five people we spend most of our time with that when we think about their characteristics and positions in life we think of words like good, powerful, ambitious, and successful while having our best interests at heart when we describe them. I recently got a chance to interview a PR mogul and a super businesswoman, the owner of the well-established African Star, which holds clients like the great AKA. Farah Fortune is one of the best publicist out there, not only has she worked with major companies and celebrities she has hosted the best parties and events. This young, stylish, beautiful and highly talented woman knows what she wants and won’t stop until she gets it. She strongly believes that your company is very important, that your friends are the best marketing tool. I was always fascinated with the PR industry; it probably holds the best pool of people to network with because all industries need a public image, whether you are a major corporate company or the best rapper in South Africa. Marketing is key to achieve global status.

Farah has inspired me even more after considering her answers to the questions I asked, I can see the qualities that make her succeed, stand out very prominently. I see someone who isn’t afraid to say everything comes from hard work. I also see someone who plays the mother figure for many of her clients, where she cares for their happiness and success far beyond her mandate. She believes in youth development. Farah believes that in business, one should never watch your competition because you will lose focus of your own goals; she believes that you should always trust your decisions and never give up because just like a storm, anything that disrupts you shall pass.

When one thinks of the best marketing tool, social media comes to mind first. Social media has changed the way we look at communication and marketing at large, I really feel like social media is the best marketing tool. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have constructed bridges between people from various countries. Farah however disagrees with me, she says although social media is a brilliant marketing tool; word of mouth is the best.

At the end of the day the most important thing is that you must make a name for yourself, work hard and speak to everyone. Work so hard that you don’t have to introduce yourself.

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